Apparatus for improving, bleaching, or conditioning wheat, flour, or other cereals.



No. 796,340. PATENTED AUG. 1, 1905. I W. T. MERGIBR. v APPARATUS FORIMPROVING, BL'EAOHING, 0R CONDITIONING WHEAT, FLOUR,

OR OTHER CEREALS.

APPLICATION 11.21) FEB. 1.1004.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES fi VL i/Vl 7 Aunlew. I. cam 00.. mYumnouumus. mam

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. 1

WILLIAM TURPIN MERCIER, OF BELFAST, IRELAND, ASSIGNOR TO THE OZONISEDOXYGEN COMPANY LIMITED, OF MANCHESTER, ENGLAND.

APPARATUS FOR IMPROVING, BLEACHING, ORCONDITIONING WHEAT, FLOUR, OROTHER CEREALS.

Specification of Iletters Patent.

Patented Aug. 1, 1905.

Original applicatioirfiled November 23, 1903, Serial N0. 182,219.Divided and this application filed February 1, 1904. $erial No. 191,504.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM TURPIN MER- OIER, miller, a subject of theKing of Great.

Britain and Ireland, residing at Duiferin Flour and Meal Mills, Belfast,Ireland, have invented certain new and useful ImprovedApparatus forImproving, Bleaching, or Conditioning Wheat, Flour, or other Cereals,(for which I have applied for a patent in Great Britain, filed July 2,1903, No. 14,757, and obtained a patent in Canada, dated December 8,1902, No. 84,245,) of which the following is aspecification. V

It has been suggested to use ozone for sterilizing and bleachingcereals. The process therein set forth is, however, oflittle commercialvalue, for although a fairly good bleaching effect is attained a smelland taste are imparted to the cereal which are so persistent that theyare still to be detected in the bread baked from the flour. suggested tobleach or condition flour'by exposing it to chlorin. Such treatment,however, is injurious to the baking quality of the flour, the glutentherein being attacked by the chlorin.

By my invention the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the use ofeither ozone or chlorin alone are overcome by using a mixture of thesetwo agents, to which mixture I expose the cereal in an air-drycondition. The chlorin does not appear to affect materially thebleaching and sterilizing eflect produced by the ozone; but it isvaluable in correcting the taste and smell imparted by the ozone. Forthis purpose the proportion of chlorin to ozone need not be large; butit varies with the kind of flour under treatment and is easilyascertained by an experiment with a sample of the flour.

To the chemical production of chlorin in a flour-mill there are'severalobjections. Indeed, the difliculty of obtaining chlorin chemically freefrom arsenic is considerable unless costly precautions are taken. Iprefer,therefore, by my invention to obtain chlorin electrolytically.

Suitable apparatus for practicing my invention is shown in theaccompanying drawlngs.

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic elevation of the apparatus used in myimproved method; Fig. 2, a vertical longitudinal section; Fig. 3, avertical transverse section, and Fig-., 4 plan of It has also been I theelectrolytic tank forming part of the said apparatus.

Referring to Fig. 1, an alternating-current dynamo a is connected byleads a to the primary of a transformer 6, the secondary of which isconnected to the terminals of the ozonizer 0; The ozonizer is suppliedwith a current of air by means of the blower d and pipe cZ,the resultingozonized air being led from the ozonizer by pipes e to water-sealedchambers in the electrolytic tank from which. after mixing with thegaseous products of electrolysis, as hereinafter described, theresulting gas or mixture of gases is led by pipes g to a chamber h, inwhich the flour or other material to be treated is subjected to theaction of the gas or gases.

The chamber h is preferably one of a series of cylindrical chambers-suchas are described in the specification to British Patent No. 10,323 of1902, and the ozonizer-blower and electrical plant may be of any knownsuitable character.

The electrolytic tank f consists of a wood box with iron plates on thesides or, preferably, of a plate-iron box or casing i, forming thecathode of the cell, to which is connected a conductor leading to thepole of some suitable source of constant current. The bottom of thecasing is covered with cement or other protective coating and isprovided with a cock 2', by which the electrolyte can be run .off whendesired or its'level altered. The

wood box or casing is divided longitudinally into a number ofcompartments by iron-plate partitions 7a, which are fixed at each end tothe box or casing, but do not reach to the bottom thereof. These platesare also connected to the cable or conductor above mentioned. Ineachcompartmentis placed an inverted box Z, which may be of Wood,

preferably impregnated with paraffin, Wax, or the like, or of ironcoated with an adherent cement, enamel, or other insulating materialnally for the reception of the carbon blocks m, the blocks in each cellbeing clamped or otherwise suitably fastened to a brass or copper bar mor cast into lead and the tops of the boxes being rendered gas-tight bymeans of asuitable cement. The bars m are electrically connected to thepole of the source of continuous current. The top of each box is alsoprovided with a feed-hole in which may be fitted a siphon a, thefeed-hole being sealed by the electrolyte contained in the limbs of thesiphon or by a wood plug.

The siphon n, as well as the inlet-pipes e from the ozonizer, and theoutlet-pipes g are sealed into the tops of the boxes Z by means of asuitable cement, and the joints are otherwise rendered gas-tight.

When the electrolyzing current is passed through'the brine in the tankfrom the carbon anodes to the casing or plates, chlorin or a mixture ofchlorin and oxygen is given off at the anodes and accumulates in thegas-chambers, where it mixes with the ozonized air from the oZoniZer,the mixture passing through the outlet-pipes to the chambers in whichthe flour is treated. The gases evolved at the cathode do not pass intothe gas-chambers, since no gas is evolved from the bottom of the casing,owing to its coating of cement, and the gas evolved at the sides andends of the tank and plates pass up to the exposed surface of theelectrolyte outside the boxes.

Having thus described the nature of this invention and the best means Iknow of carrying the same into practical effect, I claim- 1. Apparatusfor improving, bleaching, or conditioning wheat, flour, or other cereal,

comprising a blower, an ozonizer, a passage from the said blower to thesaid ozonizer, an electrolytic tank, a passage from the said ozonizer tothe said electrolytic tank, a chamber and a passage from the saidelectrolytic tank to the said chamber; substantially as described.

2. Apparatus for improving, bleaching or conditioning wheat, flour orother cereal, comprisinga blower, an ozonizer, a passage from the saidblower to the said ozonixer, an electrolytic tank, consisting of an ironcasing as the cathode, partitions fixed to the ends of the casing butnot extending to the bottom thereof, an inverted box in each of thecompartments formed by the said partitions, and anodes in each box, apassage from the said ozonizer to the said electrolytic tank, a chamber,and a passage from the said electrolytic tank to the said chamber;substantially as described.

3. Apparatus for improving, bleaching, or conditioning wheat, flour, orother cereal, comprising a blower, an ozonizer, a passage from theblower to the said ozonizer, an electrolytic tank consisting of an ironcasing as cathode, iron partitions fixed to the ends of the casing butnot extending to the bottom thereof, an inverted box in each of thecompartments formed by the said partitions, ledges in the casingsupporting the said boxes, carbon anodes in each box, brine-inlet pipes,a chamber and pipes leading from the said ozonizer to each of the saidboxes, and from each of the said boxes to the said chamber;substantially as described.

In testimony whercofI have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM TURPI N MERUIER.

Witnesses:

JOHN MoQUAnn, E. LLOYD Enwxnos.

